A team of robotics experts in Europe have created a robot that can use instructions in the internet to cook a meal.
The group RoboHow calls the breakfast-making (for now) robot PR2. PR2 can learn how to cook by simply watching humans and combining that knowledge with information from videos on the internet, according to the MIT Technology Review.
First, PR2 scans text from any instructional site, such as WikiHow, to gather knowledge it needs to cook. In addition, the robot analyzes sophisticated human motions used in culinary, such as whisking or flipping.
PR2 then uses semantic parsing, which is the method machines use to analyze human language into usable information. The robot is able to learn everything in cooking - from how to hold a spatula properly, to cooking up the right amount of force needed to flip a pancake successfully.
After acquiring the knowledge for a task, PR2 then uploads this information to a database specially for other RoboHow robots, according to The Daily Meal.
It is possible then that there could be a fleet of Michelin-rated chef robots whipping meals in the future, says Fox News. And that's not all, this fleet could appear sooner than you think.
According to RoboHow member and head artificial intelligence researcher at the University of Bremen in northern Germany, Michael Beetz, robots such as PR2 could be in the market in just 10 years.
See how PR2 makes pancakes in the video below.
Apparently, it isn't just breakfast-making robots being created nowadays. HoLLiE, a high-tech bartender, has recently mixed 285 cocktails at an event in Berlin, Germany.
Outer Places reported that the mixologist robot created the drinks which were ordered by customers via a tablet app. HoLLiE even interacted with bar staff, saying phrases like "Bramble Fizz coming up next!" as well as "Could someone please bring me new glasses?"
According to Eater, this isn't the first time a robot has gained expertise in culinary. In 2010, a research team was able to train a robotic arm to flip and catch a pancake using "reinforcement learning." A high-tech robot unveiled by Moley Robotics was also able to cook nearly 2,000 recipes.
Meanwhile, the restaurant industry is now considering replacing minimum wage workers with computers due to rising wages.
